New Delhi:- Ryan Breslow, co-founder of e-commerce software firm Bolt, was subpoenaed by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission last year. The Information first reported the news on Friday. The SEC is investigating whether any state securities laws were violated in connection with Mr. The letter was sent to Mr. Bolt's attorneys on behalf of two of Mr. Bolt's investors, Brian Reinken of WestCap Management and Arjun Sethi of Tribe Capital Management, as part of a request for a review of the company's filings on behalf of Series C and Series B investors, respectively.

The letter, referenced by The Information, alleges Breslow "misled" investors by raising a $355 million Series E round that valued the company at $11 billion. Lawyers representing WestCap and Tribe Capital wrote that Mr. Breslow "materially misrepresented the company's financial position and product pipeline, resulting in Series E investors acquiring the company at a significantly inflated valuation." 

Shortly after that Series E financing was announced in January 2022, Breslow made headlines in both positive and negative ways related to comments he made about competitors and investors, and ended up stepping down as Bolt's CEO. Soon after, he launched a wellness marketplace called Love that, according to his LinkedIn profile, he founded in January 2022.

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Asked about the subpoena and lawsuit, an SEC spokesperson tells that the agency “does not comment on the existence or nonexistence of a possible investigation.”

In a separate matter, a lawsuit filed this week against Breslow by former board member Activant Ventures' Steve Sarracino alleges that Breslow removed him and two other board members when they declined to help Breslow repay a $30 million loan. Sarracino's suit also alleges that CEO Maju Kuruvilla and three board members appointed afterward did not force Breslow to make loan repayments.

When reached for comment, Breslow did not respond personally, but brought in a Bolt spokesperson who acknowledged the lawsuit regarding the loan, writing via email that, “Bolt is not the direct target of this litigation, and we continue to seek resolution of the outstanding amount. The Company remains well capitalized and the existence of this outstanding obligation to the Company will not affect the Company's day-to-day operations or prospects.” 

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When Bolt announced its Series E funding, the company was a hot commodity. Of $355 million in revenue, Breslow told at the time, "It may seem like a lot of money, but it really isn't. It's the capital that makes us competitive." This capital allows us to attract top talent, make strategic acquisitions and expand in Europe, which is important for us. "

At the time, Mr. Bolt had no problem raising large sums of money, but Mr. Breslow made the public early on that it was difficult to lure investors from Silicon Valley. Shortly after Series E, he began posting the idea on his Twitter. It didn't take long for him to step down as CEO, stressing that his resignation had nothing to do with the attention his tweets received.

Things soon became a roller coaster for Bolt. The company was sued by one of its largest customers in May 2022 (the lawsuit was settled months later). The next day, reported a 131% year-over-year increase in buyer accounts and a 192% year-over-year increase in total active seller accounts, in a blog post written by CEO Maju Kuruvila. 

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Then, just a few weeks later, Bolt laid off more than 100 employees as part of a restructuring plan, but Kuruvila wrote in a blog post that it was due to changing market conditions, saying, "It's no secret that market conditions are changing in our industry and technology sector, and in the face of macroeconomic challenges, we have taken steps to adjust our operations in order to achieve profitability with the funds we have already raised."

After the Series E, The New York Times reported that Bolt's leadership had begun another round of talks with investors to raise additional capital at a higher valuation of $14 billion. But this has not happened yet. 

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The CEO of the Bolt which is an E-Commerce Software Company that got sued by the Board members along with the Co-founder Ryan Breslow. They claimed that he was asking for the loan to be cleared that the company was heading towards.